The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1887-03-26

gational church for what so many of its
ministers have fastened to repudiate;
and certainly the religion of Christ
should not suffer because some of his
ministers seem to know so little of his
great love. And the condemnation
should rest more upon the theology of
such preachers as Drs. Goodwin and
Little than upon themselves. We must
believe that they are sincere; that they
believe what they profess; and believing
this their conduct was logical and con-
sistent. If their theology is true, Beech
er's is false; and the fact that the great
preacher was dying did not change the
character of his teachings, but tended
rather through sympathy to make them
only the more dangerous. And why ex-
press a human sympathy for one who
had deliberately given his great powers
to the teaching Of falsehoods; to the
undermining and overthrowing of
Christianity Why sympathize with
one whom God would condemn 1t has
cold, heartless God; and what a small
thing it is to withhold a little sympa-
thy in the dying hour, when their God
will withhold his mercy forever That
is the logic of such theology; and such
is its tendency upon those who really
believe it. Such theology "has no
time to spend over dead pagans," and
no sympathy to waste over dying here
tics; and very little for you, and me,
and the millions whom it condemns to
endless torment for not believing what
our reason and our moral consciousness
compel us to deny. 1t is the same spirit
and policy that turn living men out
Of the pulpits-that turned Professor
Swing out of the Presbyterian, and my
self out of the Methodist church.
The larger intelligence and tolerance
of our day rises up to condemn such
narrowness and bigotry; but the weight
of censure will at last rest upon the
theology that makes them possible. In
hardly any other way could the better
doctrines and the larger generosity of
the great preacher have been so power
fully emphasized. Men will say, if such
doctrines could make a Beecher, with
bis worldwide sympathy and love, that
is the doctrine we want. And the age
that sees the chains falling from the
slaves, that sees justice, and liberty,
and brotherhood, and humanity coming
on earth cannot be held to a belief in a
heartless God and hopeless hell. The
great spring-time is here, and the old
icebergs of belief must melt away.
o, what beautiful scene was that
at the funeral, when Methodist, and
Baptist, and Presbyterian, and Uni
versalist and Unitarian churches, were
opened and thronged with people, and
all their ministers and the Jewish Rabbi
forgot their differences in the presence
of the mighty dead. If Beecher's spirit
was there-and l think it was-with
what joy must he have looked upon that
scene of brotherhood and love that his
long life and ministry had helped make
possible. In passing through this val
ley Of weeping, he had caused it to be
a WE'LL" he had preached righteous
ness to the great congregation'-and
plead for every cause of justice and lib
erty; plead for love and brotherhood;
tried to beat down the separating walls
and barriers that kept men apart and
now, how beautiful to see them coming
together around his grave. behold
how good and how pleasant it is for
brethren to dwell together in unity"
Oh! what must it be for such man
to die; to close his eyes upon the beauty
of the earth and sky upon which they
had so often gazed; to go away from
the world where he had lived and Ia
bored so long. What is it for heart
that throbbed in sympathy with the
want and sorrow and hope OF his race
to beat no more; what is it for the
voice that had spoken to the millions to
be silent. Never perhaps has the death
of any man in our country touched so
many hearts as that of this great preach
er for no other has lived so long and said
and done 80 much.
But he is not dead; with Lovejoy
and Lincoln; with Phillips and CARR
son and Greeley; with Charming and
Chaplin and Simpson, and with many
poor slave whom he helped to make
free, Henry Ward Beecher lives in the
immortal world. He left his impress
upon his age, and long will his memory
and influence live among men.